Intimidation scam nets fraudster $3,000

KELOWNA - A fraud scheme making rounds in the city combines the names of the Canada Revenue Agency and the Royal Canadian Mounted Police to seem credible to victims.

On March 1, at about 1 p.m. the Kelowna RCMP say a 30-year-old woman was called by someone who said they were an agent from the Canada Revenue Agency. She was told both she and her husband owed money and if they didn't pay it off immediately a warrant would be issued for their arrest for tax evasion. Instructions were given so the couple could obtain prepaid credit cards to the could expedite the process, preventing arrest.

When the victim became suspicious, the caller hung up. Moments later the woman the phone rang and call display showed 911. The man on the line told her he was a constable with the RCMP and reassured her the call was legitimate and she needed to complete the process to avoid arrest.

"It was in fact a ploy to scare the victim into paying fictitious fees," Const. Kris Clark says.

Altogether, the victim lost $3,000 through the fraudster's use of pressure tactics and intimidation.

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